Refrigerated merchandising storage unit with sliding door covers

ABSTRACT

A cover for a merchandising display unit ( 1 ) disclosed. The cover of the rectangular top opening of the storage compartment includes displaceable lids ( 9 ) arranged in two rows along opposing longer sides ( 2,4 ) of the storage unit so that access is provided to the storage compartment from both sides of the storage unit. The cover has a stationary cover plate ( 6 ) along a mid section of the storage unit and a rail system ( 5 ) with a number of parallel transverse rails between the two longer sides, and the lids ( 9 ) mounted between separate tracks in adjacent rails and are displaceable in a direction perpendicular to the longer sides ( 2,4 ).

The present invention relates to a cover for a merchandising displayunit, in particular a refrigerated merchandising display unit, fordisplay of goods. The cover of the rectangular top opening of thestorage compartment includes displaceable lids arranged in two rowsalong opposing longer sides of the storage unit so that access isprovided to the storage compartment from both sides of the storage unit.

BACKGROUND

For many years, grocery stores have commonly used refrigerating orfreezing storage units of the above-mentioned kind, which are accessiblefrom the top along both sides of the unit to allow for an overview ofthe contents of the storage unit and for free and unhindered access fromthe top by the customers and the staff.

The refrigerating or freezing merchandising storage unit may be coveredwith insulation mats during periods in which the grocery store or asimilar store is closed in order to reduce energy consumption whenstoring the goods in the storage unit.

The use of open refrigerating and freezing merchandising storage unitresults in extensive losses of energy and it may therefore be providedwith an essentially transparent cover. Several examples of covers areknown which may be used during opening hours. Thus, refrigerating andfreezing storage units provided with a cover by the manufacturer areknown. Alternatively, the cover may be retrofitted onto an existingstorage unit.

Known covers for refrigerating and freezing merchandising storage unitsmay be divided into two different types. A sliding lid type and a“lift-up” type.

The sliding lid type is of the kind where a cover in the longitudinaldirection of the storage unit is typically divided into an appropriatenumber of plane plates, typically approx. 62.5 cm of width. Theindividual plates are arranged in two planes so that they may bedisplaced in the longitudinal direction of the storage unit over,respectively under each other. Examples hereof are known from EP 0 769262 A2. The plates are transparent which provides for the possibility ofexamining the goods in the storage unit without having to open it.However, this design only allows for access to the storage compartmentin a maximum of half of the longitudinal direction, which limits accessto the goods in the storage unit and makes refilling and cleaning of thestorage unit difficult since it cannot be opened in the entirelongitudinal direction at the same time.

U.S. Pat. No. 2,793,925 discloses a cover with sliding lids that arearranged in two planes and may be displaced in the transversal directionof the storage unit over, respectively under each other. However, theaccess to the storage compartment is similarly limited to a maximum ofhalf of the top opening area.

The “lift-up” type is of the kind where a cover in the longitudinaldirection of the storage unit is divided into an appropriate number ofplates, typically 62.5 cm in width. In the width, the lift-up type isdivided into two plane plates hinged to a centre console extending inthe longitudinal direction so that the individual parts of the 24-hourcover along the longer side of the storage unit may be lifted up andthereby opened. However, operating this type is difficult for littlepeople such as for example children. In addition, a pumping effect iscreated during opening and closing so that when opened, warm air fromthe surroundings is sucked into the storage unit and cool air is pumpedout into the surroundings when it is closed. This results in anundesirable energy loss.

On this background, it is the object of the invention is to create acover for a merchandising storage unit of the initially mentioned kindwhich provides for simultaneous or unhindered access to the storagecompartment of the merchandising unit in its entire longitudinaldirection along both longer sides without the disadvantages mentionedabove, and in particular, it is an object of the invention to avoidunnecessary energy loss when operating the cover of a refrigeratedstorage unit. Moreover, it is an object of the invention to provide acover for a merchandising unit, which ensures good access to thecontents of the merchandising unit from the top on both sides and whichallows the customers and staff to examine the contents of the storageunit without having their vision compromised.

The invention comprises a cover of the initially mentioned kind, saidcover has a stationary cover plate extending parallel to said sidesalong a mid section of the storage unit and a rail system with a numberof parallel transverse rails between the two longer sides, and that thelids are displaceable mounted between two adjacent rails of the railsystem, said rails comprising separate tracks for the lids in each ofthe rows, whereby the lids in the rows are displaceable in a directionperpendicular to the longer sides. The lids are preferably essentiallytransparent.

Hereby, the objects of the invention are obtained since the lids of acover according to the invention may be opened by displacement towardsthe centre of the merchandising unit under or over the stationary coverplate. Hereby, access may be provided along the entire length at bothsides without creating a pump effect by operating the lids. In addition,good visual access is provided for easy examination of the contents ofthe merchandising unit, since the cover according to the inventionprovides for the possibility of simultaneous opening of a largepercentage of the total top of the merchandising unit. By transparentlids, a good possibility of immediate visual examination of the contentsis also ensured without having to open the cover and thereby initiatethe unavoidable extra energy loss which this inevitably causes.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the rails are providedwith three tracks, where the cover plate is arranged in a separatetrack, which is preferably the uppermost of the three tracks. By usingthree tracks and having the centre plate stationary arranged in themiddle of the uppermost track, a cover is provided with each of the lidscovering approx. ⅓ of the width of the top opening. Hereby, a totalpotential opening area of up to ⅔ of the entire opening of themerchandising unit offers unhindered access to the contents of thestorage unit.

By designing the rails as profiles with three tracks, arrangement of thecover in three parallelly extending planes is allowed for. The two rowsof lids are placed in the lower and the middle track, respectively, ofthe profiles. Hereby, the lids may be displaced independently of eachother, not just in relation to the other lids in the same row, but alsoindependently of the lids in the opposite row.

In a preferred embodiment of a cover according to the invention, thecover is plane. In this embodiment, the rails are straight.

In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the covers is providedwith a curved shape as the rails are designed with a convex curvaturewhereby “free space” is provided above the goods in the storagecompartment of the merchandising unit. The lids may be designed in aneasily bendable plate material whereby the curvature does notnecessarily have to be a circular curvature since the lids hereby wouldbe able to adjust to the curvature of the rail sections which they atany given time are present in, once they are displaced back and forthbetween open and closed position.

The invention also refers to a merchandising storage unit for display ofgoods comprising a storage compartment having an essentially rectangulartop opening which provides access to the storage compartment from bothlonger sides of the storage unit and a cover according to the firstaspect described above. The storage compartment may be divided into twosections by means of a wall member arranged parallel to the longersides, whereby the merchandising unit may be used for several groups ofgoods separated so that there is access to the groups of goods from bothsides of the merchandising unit.

The invention is described in detail in the following with reference tothe accompanying drawings, in which

FIG. 1 is a perspective drawing of a merchandising unit displaying goodswith a cover according to a first preferred embodiment of the invention,

FIG. 2 is a perspective drawing of a merchandising unit displaying goodswith a cover according to a second preferred embodiment of theinvention,

FIG. 3 is a cross-section of a merchandising unit displaying goods witha cover according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, and

FIG. 4 is a detailed drawing of the embodiment of a cover in acorresponding end storage unit.

In FIGS. 1 to 3 are shown a merchandising unit for display and sale ofrefrigerated or frozen goods in a supermarket store or a similar store.As it is shown, the contents of the merchandising unit for display ofgoods are accessible from both longer sides 2, 4. These two longersides, a first side 2 and a second side 4, respectively, are paralleland the merchandising unit 1 has an essentially rectangular basic shape.The merchandising unit 1 has a storage compartment 8, which may bedivided into two sections by a partition wall 3 as shown in FIG. 3. Thestorage compartment 8 has a top opening 7 over which the cover inmounted.

The cover comprises a number of rails 5 arranged in parallel between thefirst and the second longer sides 2, 4 at a certain predetermined andpreferably equal distance. The rails 5 have three substantially paralleltracks, in which the cover plates 6, 9, 10 are displaceably arranged. Inthe upper track, a centre plate 6 is permanently arranged. In each ofthe other tracks, a number of displaceable lids 9 are arranged so thatthey cover the opening between the centre plate 6 and the side edge 2,and in the third track on the rails 5 a number of displaceable lids 10for covering the opening between the centre plate 6 and the second side4 are correspondingly arranged.

The lids 9, 10 are arranged in two rows in such a way that they may beshifted between an open position, where they are completely or partiallyshifted in underneath the centre plate 6 from each side, and a closedposition, where the lids 9, 10 abut the first and the second side edgesof the sides 2, 4, respectively. The width of the two sets of lids 9, 10is preferably substantially the same as the width of the centre plate 6.Hereby, the possibility of simultaneous opening of approx. ⅔ of the topopening 7 of the storage unit 1 is achieved. As is apparent from FIGS. 2and 3, the lids 9, 10 and the centre plate 6 are transparent so thatthere is unhindered access for visual orientation of the kinds of goodsand their location in the merchandising unit 1.

On the centre plate 6, a display device 11 may be mounted, on whichsigns with e.g. price tags, special offers, etc. relating to the goodsin the storage unit may be displayed.

As shown in FIG. 1, the cover of the storage unit 1 may be designed as aflat cover according to a first embodiment of the invention, since therails 5 are straight and the cover plates 6, 9, 10 are plane.

In a second embodiment of the invention, the cover is designed with acurvature as shown in FIG. 2. The rails 5 are curved, so that the tworows of lids 9, 10 along both longer sides 2, 4 of the merchandisingunit 1 and the centre plate 6 have a convex cover of the merchandisingunit 1.

In FIG. 4 is shown an embodiment of the cover in an accompanying endstorage unit which is located at the end of a merchandising unit of thetype shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The cover of the end storage unit is alsodivided into three sections so that a simultaneous opening of ⅔ of thetop is possible. A fixed plate 6 a is arranged at the back. Twodisplaceable plates 10 a and 10 b are arranged in a track 5 a in frontof the plate. The outermost plate 10 a may be provided with a handle foroperation of the cover.

The invention is described above with reference to two preferredembodiments. However, it is realised by the invention that the cover maybe carried out in other variants than these without departing from thescope of the invention as specified in the accompanying claims.

1. A cover for a merchandising storage unit for display of goodsincluding a storage compartment having an essentially rectangular topopening, the cover comprising: displaceable lids arranged in two rowsalong opposing longer sides of the storage unit so that access isprovided to the storage compartment from both sides of the storage unit;a stationary cover plate extending parallel to said sides along a midsection of the storage unit; and a rail system with a number of paralleltransverse rails between the two longer sides; wherein the lids aredisplaceably mounted between two adjacent rails of the rail system, saidrails comprising separate tracks for the lids in each of the rows,whereby the lids in the rows are displaceable in a directionperpendicular to the longer sides.
 2. A cover according to claim 1,wherein the rails have three tracks and the cover plate is arranged in aseparate track comprising the uppermost of the three tracks.
 3. A coveraccording to any of the preceding claims 1, wherein each of the lidscovers approximately {fraction (1/3)} of a width of the top opening. 4.A cover according to any of the preceding claims 1, wherein the cover isplanar.
 5. A cover according to claim 1, wherein the cover is providedwith a curved shape along a width of the opening.
 6. A merchandisingstorage unit for display of goods comprising a storage compartmenthaving an essentially rectangular top opening which provides access tothe storage compartment from both longer sides of the storage unit and acover comprising: displaceable lids arranged in two rows along opposinglonger sides of the storage unit so that access is provided to thestorage compartment from both sides of the storage unit; a stationarycover plate extending parallel to said sides along a mid section of thestorage unit, and a rail system with a number of parallel transverserails between the two longer sides, wherein the lids are displaceablymounted between two adjacent rails of the rail system, said railscomprising separate tracks for the lids in each of the rows, whereby thelids in the rows are displaceable in a direction perpendicular to thelonger sides.
 7. A merchandising storage unit according to claim 6,wherein the storage compartment is divided into two sections by a wallmember arranged parallel to the longer sides.
 8. A merchandising storageunit according to claim 6, wherein an end storage unit is arranged at anend section of the merchandising storage unit, the end storage unitcomprising a number of displaceable lids, which may be displaced awayfrom an outer side of the end storage unit and towards an inner side ofthe end storage unit for opening thereof.